Res 1620-2017

By The Speaker (Council Member Mark-Viverito) and Council Members Lander, Van Bramer and Garodnick Whereas, On Saturday, August 12, 2017, white supremacists gathered for a scheduled protest in Charlottesville, Virginia against the city's plan to remove a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee; and Whereas, Many jurisdictions around the nation have begun to remove or relocate statues that commemorate leaders of the Confederacy, the political entity that fought against the outlawing of chattel slavery; and Whereas, The removal of such statues has been met with violent opposition, mostly from white supremacist organizations; and Whereas, According to several reports and live footage, protestors waved Nazi and Confederate flags, wore clothing adorned with symbols associated with fascism, and chanted neo-Nazi, racist, and anti-Semitic slogans; and Whereas, According to the New York Times, militia members dressed in camouflage were armed with assault rifles, possessing weapons as sophisticated and alarmingly dangerous as Virginia's state police department; and Whereas, Thousands of citizens of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, as well as clergy members and anti-white supremacist organizations peacefully counter-protested; and Whereas, Counter-protestors were violently targeted by the supremacists, resulting in arrests, numerous injuries, and a fatality; and Whereas, James Alex Fields Jr., a white man from Ohio, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, three counts of malicious wounding, and other charges for intentionally driving a car into a crowd of counter-protestors, injuring 19 and killing one, Heather Heyer; and Whereas, Two Virginia State Police Officers, Lieutenant Jay Cullen and Trooper-Pilot Berke M.M. Bates, died in a helicopter crash as they helped law enforcement officers monitor white supremacists; and Whereas, White supremacist and neo-Nazi ideologies are inherently violent, seeking to reignite social animosities, reverse improvements in race relations, divide the American people, and deteriorate our core values; and Whereas, The ideologies and beliefs held by white supremacists and neo-Nazis, while outdated and deplorable, have been emboldened by the federal administration's policies, rhetoric, and the election of President Donald J. Trump; and Whereas, According to the Southern Poverty Law Center there are 99 neo-Nazi groups, 130 outposts of the Ku Klux Klan, 43 neo-Confederate groups, 78 racist skinhead groups and 100 white nationalist groups nation-wide, including at least 18 such organizations in New York State; and Whereas, According to the Department of Justice and the FBI, individuals espousing these beliefs have committed or attempted to commit numerous acts of domestic terrorism, and are a threat to the health and safety of Americans; and Whereas, President Trump has appeared inexplicably hesitant, both during his presidential campaign and now as President, to swiftly, unequivocally and forcefully denounce white supremacist organizations and leaders; and Whereas, It is absurd and dangerous to suggest, as President Trump has, any sort of moral equivalency between violent advocates of Nazi and white supremacist ideology, and people protesting against hate and divisiveness; and Whereas, Several U.S. Congress Members have introduced a Censure Resolution against President Trump to censure and formally condemn him for his response to the violence in Charlottesville; and Whereas, There are a number of non-profit organizations working across the country to mitigate the impacts of white supremacist groups, and to help radicalized individuals disengage from extremist movements and begin the process of de-radicalization; and Whereas, Under President Trump, the Department of Homeland Security has redirected more than $400,000 in grants, originally allocated to awardees focused on U.S.-based extremism, such as Life After Hate, which works to steer young people away from far-right extremism; and Whereas, We as the City of New York, as a nation, and as people who believe in American values of diversity, multiculturalism, and the equality of all must oppose and denounce the vile, hateful, and racist rhetoric that is at the core of white supremacists and neo-Nazis; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York condemns the Charlottesville Neo-Nazi Rally, and calls upon President Donald J. Trump to swiftly, unequivocally and consistently denounce such actions and ideologies, and direct funding to organizations working to counter far-right extremism. LS #11439 08/14/17 CMA